Revolutionary anti-coking products to be tested in the world’s largest petrochemical complex
EDMONTON, ALBERTA, CANADA - Surface Engineered Products Corp., a subsidiary of The Westaim Corporation, today announced it has received a large order for the installation of its anti-coking technology in BASF AG's ethylene cracker in Ludwigshafen, Germany, site of the world's largest petrochemical complex.
Surface Engineered Products will supply its anti-coking CoatAlloyTM tubes and fittings to retube a full furnace in BASF's ethylene plant. The tubes are scheduled for installation in May 1999.
Dr. H. Laib, head of BASF's Ludwigshafen ethylene plant said, "We are excited to be the first European ethylene producer to purchase Surface Engineered Products' revolutionary anti-coking products. We are expecting a significant improvement in our plant's performance."
The build-up of coke or carbon in furnace tubes is a major problem for ethylene producers because it leads to costly decoking steps, reduces efficiency of operation and increases the rate of metal corrosion and erosion. The coking problem is estimated to cost the worldwide ethylene industry more than $2 billion annually in lost production alone.
The BASF order represents the third commercial sale of CoatAlloyTM products and the sixth full furnace that will be retubed by Surface Engineered Products.
"We have had tremendous interest from European petrochemical producers," said Ted Redmond, President of Surface Engineered Products. "We are extremely pleased that BASF has moved quickly to be the first European producer to use our anti-coking CoatAlloyTM tubes and fittings."
Surface Engineered Products today also officially opened its new $20-million manufacturing plant in Edmonton, Alberta. The new plant has an initial capacity to process 50,000 feet (15,000 meters) per year of 2-inch (50-millimeter) diameter tubes. Due to increased demand, the company is expanding the plant's capacity to 66,000 feet (20,000 meters) per year of 2-inch diameter tubes. Expansion is expected to be complete by the second quarter of 1999, instead of the previously scheduled time frame of the fourth quarter of 1999. With the expanded capacity, Surface Engineered Products will be able to service approximately 9 per cent of the North American ethylene industry.
The Product
Surface Engineered Products' CoatAlloyTM tubes and fittings have been shown to reduce the rate of coking or carbon build-up in ethylene pyrolysis furnace tubes by up to 90 per cent, leading to longer and more economical ethylene production runs. CoatAlloyTM-I tubes and fittings, the first generation product, can increase the throughput of ethylene plants by 2 per cent to 8 per cent, and lead to lower unit production costs and increased profitability for ethylene producers.
The CoatAlloyTM anti-coking products consist of standard commercial-alloy steel tubes and fittings whose inner walls are resurfaced using Surface Engineered Products' proprietary technology. The selected tubes and fittings are sourced from major producers in Japan, Europe, Canada and the United States, and have an established performance record in their original condition. When resurfaced with Surface Engineered Products' technology, they provide significant value-added performance to an ethylene plant.
The Market
Ethylene demand is growing rapidly as products derived from ethylene are displacing conventional materials in packaging, building materials, automotive and other applications. World production of ethylene is forecast to grow from 73 million tonnes in 1996 to more than 100 million tonnes by 2005.
Ethylene producers currently consume $400 million per year of tubular products worldwide and are projected to consume $600 million per year by 2005. The market is typically 80 per cent for maintenance or retubing of existing furnaces and 20 per cent for new installations.
About Surface Engineered Products and Westaim
Surface Engineered Products Corp. has developed proprietary surface engineering processes and materials that provide enhancement and protection to metals used in severe applications in the petrochemical and other process industries. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Westaim Corporation.
Westaim specializes in launching high-potential technologies into the marketplace. Besides Surface Engineered Products, Westaim's other technology businesses include: Westaim Biomedical Corp., which has developed an infection control technology for use in the treatment of wounds; and Westaim Advanced Display Technologies Inc., which is developing a revolutionary low-cost flat panel display. Westaim also operates three industrial businesses that produce aerospace materials, coin blanks and chemical products. A TSE 300 company, Westaim's common shares are listed on The Toronto Stock Exchange, The Alberta Stock Exchange and The Montreal Exchange under the trading symbol "WED".
*CoatAlloy is a trademark of Surface Engineered Products Corp.
For more information, contact:
Tony Johnston
Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs
(403) 234-3103
tjohnsto@westaim.com
website: www.westaim.com
e-mail: info@westaim.com
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